Oral Presentation Australian and New Zealand Obesity Society Annual Scientific Conference 2024

Identifying the most effective added sugar warning label design for ready-made infant and toddler foods: An online experiment (#80)

Mamaru Awoke 1 , Maree Scully 1 , Ashleigh Haynes 1 2 , Jennifer McCann 3 , Lindsey S Taillie 4 , Andrea Schmidtke 5 , Jane Martin 5 , Mihiri Silva 6 7 8 , Anthea Rhodes 8 9 , Bridget Kelly 10 , Belinda Morley 1 , Helen Skouteris 11 , Alison McAleese 12 , Derek McCormack 13 , Siarn Rakic 11 , Mikaela Chinott 14 , Helen Dixon 1 2
  1. Centre for Behavioural Research in Cancer, Cancer Council Victoria, Melbourne , VIC, Australia
  2. School of Psychological Sciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Melbourne , VIC, Australia
  3. Institute for Physical Activity and Nutrition (IPAN), School of Exercise and Nutrition Sciences, Deakin University, Burwood, Melbourne , VIC, Australia
  4. Carolina Population Center and Department of Nutrition, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina , USA
  5. Food for Health Alliance, Melbourne , VIC, Australia
  6. Inflammatory origins, Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, Parkville, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
  7. Melbourne Dental School, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
  8. The Royal Children's Hospital Melbourne, Parkville, Melbourne , VIC, Australia
  9. Department of Paediatrics, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
  10. Early Start, School of Health and Society, Faculty of the Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities, University of Wollongong, Northfields Avenue, Wollongong, NSW, Australia
  11. School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
  12. Prevention Division, Cancer Council Victoria, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
  13. Raising Children Network, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
  14. Australian Dental Association, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Background: The retail market for ready-made infant and toddler foods (RITFs) is growing; however, many are high in sugar, posing concerns for public health.

Aims: Identify the most effective added sugar warning label (ASWL) design to help parents distinguish between RITFs with and without added sugars and promote healthier choices.

Method: Using an online experimental design, N= 1,368 Australian parents of infants and toddlers (6 to <36 months) were randomly assigned to one of four warning label conditions: text warning, text + sugar icon, text + tooth decay icon, and control (no ASWL). Each participant viewed three pairs of mock RITF products; within each pair: one RITF contained no added sugars; one contained added sugars and displayed an ASWL reflecting their assigned condition. We tested effects of ASWL designs on parents’ ability to identify RITFs with added sugar, perceived sugar content and suitability of products for their child, purchase intentions, and choices of products for their child. Poisson and linear regression analyses tested for differences in responses across ASWLs.

Results: All ASWLs significantly influenced parents' ability to correctly identify products containing added sugar and perceptions of added sugar levels in RITFs cf. the control (all p<0.05).  The text + sugar icon was the only ASWL that significantly reduced perceptions of the suitability of sugary RITFs for infants/toddlers.  The two ASWLs that included icons (text + sugar/decay) promoted significantly lower intentions to purchase sugary RITFs cf. control. None of the ASWLs prompted a significant reduction in parents' choice of less sugary RITFs for their children cf. control.

Conclusions: ASWLs can help parents identify and evaluate sugary RITFs and promote healthier choices. While all ASWLs showed beneficial effects, the text warning plus sugar icon was particularly effective across various measures, including purchase intention, perceptions of sugar content and perceived suitability of RITFs.